


I Got You

by ToneeStark



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Comfort, Happy Ending, Hurt, Hurt!Steve, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Whump, hurt!Tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2018-12-20
Packaged: 2019-09-23 12:52:01
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17080658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ToneeStark/pseuds/ToneeStark
Summary: Routine mission. Not routine romantic problems.Tony has admitted to the super soldier that he loves him, but was rejected. Now the two of them are trapped in a hydra base with injuries galore; will Steve finally admit his feelings for Tony Stark?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [navaan](https://archiveofourown.org/users/navaan/gifts).



The Iron Man propulsers zoomed over Steve’s head. He raised his shield against the bullets that began peppering him as he pushed his way forward through the battlefield. Trying to match Tony’s wit with his own was a lost cause and frustration began seeping through the Captain’s voice.

“Yes, Captain _Steven…._ ”

“Reserve that name for Strange and Strange only… you aren’t my mother, shellhead.” Steve grunted out as he did an aerial twist and slammed his shield into a hydra agent.

“You _are_ strange….” Tony laughed at his own joke and was obviously the only one doing so. A joke about not being Steve’s mother but willing to be his daddy popped into his head, but due to recent circumstances, Tony decided to keep it to himself.

This battle had lasted about forty-five minutes already, with no signs of Hydra’s forces ceasing any time soon. It was a routine flush-out of an old, snow covered coal mine that multiple witnesses claimed to be a fully active Hydra base. The witnesses weren’t wrong.

“Can’t you two- _nngh_ \- keep the bickering at bay until- _nngh_ \- we get home?!” Clint barked over releasing his bow. Barton was on top of a snowy rock, firing arrows with lightning speed. Natasha was somewhere in the distance acrobatically beating the shit out of hydra agents. Sam and Colonel Rhodes both had watch over the skies, blasting Hydra fighter planes down with Redwing at their side.

“Yeah, seriously- YEAH!.” Rhodey obviously didn’t appreciate Tony’s sense of humor today but yelled the latter sentiment cheerfully as a plane exploded and fell in an orange heap on the white laden ground. Steve swallowed at their jokes, feeling the responsibility of the battle calling for him over the awkward banter between him and Tony.

Had it really been a week since the incident already? They were already back to normal… but not normal at the same time. Tony hadn’t spoken with him the entire time since. They acted the same in front of the rest of the Avengers, but when alone, when Steve tried to confront the genius, it was like talking to a brick wall.

A week ago, Tony had finally confessed his feelings to Steve. They weren’t feelings of irritation or condescension, as Steve often wanted to expect from the genius, but feelings of admiration. Love.

_I don’t know how to say this… we have spent a lot of time together and… well…. I love you Steven Grant Rogers. I am finally unashamed to say it. You, the man out of time, are the love of my life._

Steve had been shocked. His mouth had opened and closed repeatedly as Tony looked at him with hopeful eyes. Tony had stammered, speaking quickly as soon as he noticed Steve’s lack of response.

_I mean you don’t have to respond of anything, it’s just me speaking my mind and all and well I wasn’t expecting anything from you, I just wanted you to know and thought maybe I could tell you and you would at least understand but you don’t have to understand…_

It went on the whole time… Tony trying to talk to fill the awkward silence. The supersoldier hadn’t known what to say and thus remained silent for a full five minutes before finally speaking.

_We can’t Tony._

Tony’s eyes had fallen but then regained hope after the briefest of second.

_That’s not a ‘no’ then? You have feelings too?_

Steve’s heart had burst when Tony confessed what he did. He felt the same way towards the smaller, darker haired man. _But,_ they were teammates. Colleagues. It would get in the way. It would ruin their friendship and teamwork if it didn’t work out. It was impossible. The team would judge them.

_It’s a no, Tony. I’m sorry-_

Tony had risen from his seated position, sliding the chair back noisily, and nodded, pressing his lips together.

_I understand. One hundred percent. I-uhm- I am sorry. This is awkward… I- Okay.  Roger that Captain. See you around._

Before Steve could respond, Tony had stridden out of the room, head hanging.

That was a week ago today.

Steve shook his head, realizing his focus had shifted from the battle in front of him towards the emotional battle that raged in his mind and chest. He thrusted his shield into an opposing agent with a little more than typical aggression.

____

 

Tony audibly sighed and landed, metal clad feet thumping in the snow. Friday came over his speaker system, “Boss, your lasers should be strong enough to cut through that metal door, but I would wait-“

“No time like the now, Friday.” Tony tread lightly towards the large bunker door, eyeing the design of it to choose the best spot to proceed with his metal soldering.

The area around the door was quiet and almost serene, with all of the outdoor agents rushing to meet the other Avengers. Snowflakes softly settled on the ground beneath him as he checked over his shoulder to ensure that there were no enemies at his back before leveling his arm perpendicular with the door.

“Friday, use 50% energy on the lasers.”

“Aye, boss.”

A yellow stream of light came from the mechanic’s wrist and shot into the metal door, causing molten sludge to begin falling off in chunks as the iron was super-heated. Tony moved his arm tirelessly and pretty soon there was a bright orange circle implanted into the door; the metal circle fell with a thud onto the stone floor beneath it.

The hallway beyond was lined with dim lighting that flicked with each boom that sounded from the crashing plains overhead. Tony blinked and scanned his screens for any abnormalities before proceeding ahead, feet lightly clanking against the hard flooring as he tried to tread as stealthily as possible.

Tony’s comm crackled, “Tony, where are you? We have to beat these guys before we head in.” Steve sounded muffled as he groaned through his current battle with three armed soldiers.

“You guys can keep fighting. I am going into the tunnel and will take out a few of the beret-wearing suckers early-on.”

“Tony, you need to wait for us before going in. You have no idea what is in there.”

“What was that Cap? Remind me to fix your comm when we get home. See you inside!” Tony continued walking into the hallway, remaining alert as his scanners processed the long stretch of lights before him.

“Tony, I order you to stay back, you need to-“ Tony cut his comm off and rolled his eyes. Steve was always trying to get him to stay back when there was no need. The rest of the gang had the cronies outside and he could take on the inside villains with ease. The witnesses that had laid eyes on the base before had stated that there were only soldiers, light armor, and few weapons. So far, the battle had been easy and Tony had no doubts that the rest was just clean up.

“Friday, to ease Captain Roger’s nerves, please scan the bunker and send him the results.” Tony felt a pang of guilt for not listening to Steve, but it ceased as soon as he walked far enough into the fortification to not be able to see the doorway behind him.

Tony thought about his declaration of love to Steve… and about how the other man turned him down.

The pain from that night was still ever present in Tony’s core. He tried to stuff the feelings down and ignore them until they finally imploded during a night of harmful drinking.

Tony shook his head to clear the thoughts from his mind. _Mission. Focus on the mission, Tony. Focus on the_ team. _That’s what Steve wants…_

He approached what he supposed was the main room and the door slid open upon his arrival. The mechanic peeked his head around the corner and looked into the room before striding in.

“Sentry mode.” The suit peeled back off of him and Tony stepped out, decreasing his height several inches as he did so. The suit pieced itself back together behind him and raised it’s blasters defensively.

There were 30 year old computers lining the wall, a thick layer of dust covering the black screens. This place hadn’t seen use in decades. He walked in a decent way and wiped his finger along the tops of one of the brown colored monitors, rubbing the dust between his fingers. Tony’s brain ran through previously known information, trying to decipher what was going on before Friday’s voice echoed through his suit, crackling and alarmed.

“Sir---data----blocked---can’t---going---trap!” every four words or so were cut off, but Tony got the message loud and clear. He turned back towards the Iron Man suit and yelled.

“Friday! Warn the team!” Tony’s command was too late as, what Tony assumed to be advanced technology blockers, took his trusted AI away from him in the blink of an eye. It soon took his suit from him as well, the ground shaking as the metal clamored to the floor in pieces.

Tony swiveled on his heel and started to run back to the room entrance, however as soon as he rounded the corner of the door he bumped into a large red, white, and blue brick; the impact sent him flying backwards into one of the computers. He fell ungracefully with a crash and sent one of the monitors flying to the floor. Glass shattered.

“Tony, I told you not to come in here by yourself! I- I mean _we_ \- were worried about you! You can’t just charge ahead without the rest of the group- and you are out of your suit- are you kidding me-” Steve continued scolding, walking towards Tony with a hand outstretched to help him up.

The mechanic waved his hands as he gathered his senses post-fall and subsequently screamed at the man blocking his way.

“IT’S A TRAP!”

Tony’s scream was lost as an explosion rocked the whole shelter.


	2. Chapter 2

Cracks shot up through the walls, black, jagged lines breaking through the concrete and sending metal bars and rock falling towards them.

Steve dove forward towards Tony protectively, raising his shield to block any falling debris, but he was struck by a large metal post swinging from the rafters. Steve rolled to his side with a muffled cry. He remained still.

“Steve!” Tony rose quickly, dodging various shrapnel and stones that fell his way like he was in an 8-bit video game. Dust and pebbles coated his dark hair as he shifted from side to side, rocked from the explosions that still wracked the room.

He fell to his knees at Steve’s side, scanning the man quickly for any immediate damage.

“Shit shit shit…” Steve had a huge gash on the side of his face from where the beam had struck him. Without thinking, Tony grabbed Steve’s shield and laid it over the super soldier’s chest before wrapping his smaller body around the bigger man’s. “I got you…”

Rock and metal fell until the room was pitch black.

__

Steve woke with a start, gasping for air. He sat upright but immediately regretted his decision to do so as pain split up the side of his head. He groaned and tried to raise his left hand towards his temple but found that his fingers were stuck under something heavy. He groaned and tried to get his bearings, not knowing where he was or what was going on.

It was dark when he initially opened his eyes, but as time went on, he was starting to make out shapes beside and in front of him. The serum helped, but not much. A light to his right kept flickering but was not bright enough nor lighting long enough to make much of a difference.

Steve coughed and pulled his hand from the heavy thing firmly until it released. He heard a hiss of air as he did so and, confused, patted beside him to feel something soft and squishy. He blinked and rolled to his side until he was able to make out what was adjacent to him.

Familiar brown eyes looked deep into his, but they were bloodshot and full of fear. Tony Stark stared back into Steve Roger’s eyes and if it were not for another slight breath of air, Steve felt he could have stared forever.

“Help…” It was barely noticeable.

“What?” Steve moved his hand gingerly up Tony’s body, feeling several concerning wet, sticky spots before finally resting on a hard bar pressed hard into the man’s neck. Tony was choking from a metal bar that had hit his neck, collapsing his trachea. Steve scrambled quickly to his knees, hissing as pain shot through his left ankle before he felt around and grabbed the bar holding his friend and lifted. The bar was unmoving. It was stuck to something, Steve didn’t know what. If it was a support, the whole bunker could collapse on them. If it was just stuck to a piece of concrete… Tony could die.

Steve needed light. He placed his palms on the dirty ground and began to crawl around carefully, patting the ground in front of him to ensure he wouldn’t run into anything. He made his way to the flickering light and stood on his good leg to reach the socket. He examined the fixture and ultimately decided to twist the bulb; it shattered.

Steve stood in the darkness. His breathing quickened, and he found himself slowly falling into a panic attack as he realized he didn’t know where he was, and he didn’t know where Tony was.

“Tony!” He rasped, knowing the other man was being choked to death and was in no condition to respond. Steve backed into the cracked wall behind him and slid down until his legs and butt were flush with the ground. His hands continued reaching around beside him until one encountered cold metal. He grabbed and pulled softly, the piece coming towards his chest.

Steve’s hands shook as he, for once, felt at a loss. He couldn’t see. Tony was dying. He didn’t know where he was. There was rubble all around him and multiple places on his body hurt. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to calm his brain.

_Tony is dying…Tony is dying…Tony is dying…_

Steve squeezed the metal piece into his chest. At first all he could see behind his eyelids was a soft blue light. He thought maybe he had died from stress or shock and was finally meeting the good Lord above, but lid by lid he opened his left and then his right eye and saw a glowing orb in his lap.

One of the Iron Man gauntlets lay in his arms, it’s palm a beacon of hope. A small emergency generator implanted in the palm was functioning with a slight whirring noise. Steve stared at it for the briefest of seconds before he stood bolt upright and shined the gauntlet around, settling on Tony’s now limp form. He traced the bar back to its origin and found that it connected to rubble falling from the wall. Steve inwardly cursed, before trying to formulate a plan.

He shuffled towards Tony, weak ankle dragging behind him.

“Tony! Wake up!” Tony’s eyes shot open as he took in as much air as the bar would allow through his trachea. His eyes were wide. “I am going to lift this as much as I can, and I need you to push yourself out from under it. Can you do that?”

Tony raised his hand and thumbs-upped Steve before settling the same hand on the bar, ready to get the fuck out from under the metal that had claimed him.

“Use both hands.”

“ _Ca-a-n’t…”_ Tony ground out painfully.

Steve shined the light to Tony’s other arm and only saw a large rock setting in the way. “God…” Steve grimaced thinking of the mangled mess that must be the mechanic’s left arm. Tony had always had some problems with that arm, but now he _definitely_ would… if he ever even managed to use it again.

The super soldier snapped his focus back to the bar. “First things first, shellhead. Do what you can and I’ll lift as long as I can.”

Steve set the gauntlet down and gripped the bar tight, planting both of his feet firmly into the ground before using all of his strength to slowly lift the metal that pinned Tony. He lifted and heard Tony gasp out as the pressure released from on top of his throat. Steve’s ankle burned with the stress.

Glancing towards his counterpart, Steve noticed that the lift still wasn’t enough to allow Tony to sneak out from under the metal. His steady groan turned into a full out scream as his muscles strained to lift. Eventually Steve raised it high enough that Tony wiggled his face under the bar and slid out. Steve let it down gently, still afraid of collapsing the structure on their heads.

His ankle screamed at him from the use and he fell to the floor in a heap, allowing himself a few seconds recovery before turning his attention to Tony. Steve turned, lowering slowly to grab the gauntlet, and shone it over towards the injured man to his left. He shuffled over to him and stumbled down to his knees.

Tony was in bad shape. His face was littered with cuts and scrapes and deep bruising was settling in a thick line along his throat. His arm, still stuck under the rock, was bent at odd angles leading up to the stone that pinned him, and blood stained the tight black body suit that he wore under the metal panels of Iron Man. He wheezed methodically as blood dribbled from the corner of his mouth.

“Tony…. God…” Steve took his pointer finger and caressed the corner of Tony’s lips, pulling back in fearful awe and glancing at the red that stained his fingertip.

“Don’t have to call me God…” a raspy, sarcastic answer fueled by fear. Tony smiled up at Steve but faltered when he began coughing.

“We’ve gotta get this rock off of you buddy. Hold still.”

“No… no, please don’t.” Tony whimpered, squeezing his eyes shut in vulnerability.

Steve ignored him, placed his feet against the rock, and extended his legs slowly, raising it off of the mangled arm beneath it.

Tony screamed, eyes and mouth popping open and veins bulging by his temples. After a few seconds, his head thudded back against the hard floor as he passed out, but Steve had managed to free his arm.

“Tony… tony stay with me.” He shone the gauntlet onto Tony’s now slack, unconscious face. Beads of sweat were formed on the mechanic’s upper lip and forehead. They dripped down and mixed with the blood caked along his brow.

“Please… stay with me…”


	3. Chapter 3

Tony awoke to the feeling of pain. Pain in his throat, arms, legs, chest…. Everywhere. His head throbbed, and he felt light headed even though he could tell he was lying down. His eyes felt like they were glued shut, but slowly he opened them with what felt like was lash by lash. His forehead burned with fever and despite the fact that he was freezing, he could feel the stickiness on his skin from sweat.

It was dark, but there was a soft hum and glowing orb in Tony’s vision. He wondered briefly if he died and the afterlife _was_ real. Fat chance with the way he felt, unless he was in hell. After a few seconds his vision focused, and he was able to discern the outline of his gauntlet as well as a pair of concerned blue eyes.

“Tony. Thank God.”

Tony tried to speak but all that came out from between his lips was a whimper. He tried again, “-was jus’ thinkin’ ‘bout him…or her… it…God”

“Tony… you are in pretty bad shape. I can’t move you… but we need to do something about these wounds.”

“Yeah. No moving.” Tony agreed and tried to shake his head to show so, but grimaced when he felt the muscles pull in his chest. He glanced down and saw several bloody holes in his bodysuit and furrowed his brow. “Cap, where are we?”

As if on cue, the recent events played out in Tony’s genius brain like a projector. The explosion, him covering Steve’s body with his. The splintering pain that coursed through his arm when the rock landed on it and the fear that plagued him when the metal bar collapsed on his neck. Tony felt his wounded chest seize as his eyes trailed over his body and towards his arm. The arm was awkwardly shaped and there were several gashes from which shards of bone stuck out. It wasn’t shattered, but it was definitely broken in multiple locations.

Tony’s eyes began to water as his breathing quickened. His chest rose and fell rapidly, and his good hand began to shake as it reached for its left sided match.

“Tony… breathe. You have to breathe…” Steve took a gentle hand and applied it onto Tony’s breast bone, trying to slow the panic attack and shock stirring within the genius. The bloody spots on Tony’s torso were from what appeared to be concrete shrapnel that has pierced a few dermal layers, but upon further examination, had not penetrated deeper than an inch. Tony bled from them slowly, the pain from them minimal compared to the pain coursing through his arm. Red tinted sweat from his matted, dark hair began to drip into Tony’s wide eyes and sting them.

Air puffed from between his lips, “St-steve…. This is bad…. Nngh...” The genius raised his head one last time, until the shock wore him down and the back of his head thudded yet again against the cold concrete beneath it.

Finally, Steve’s military prowess and experience kicked in and he began thinking more tactically. He needed to move them both away from the crackling debris that still crumbled from the rafters above them.

“I’m so sorry, Tony...” Steve said with a grimace before positioning himself behind Tony, squatting, and wrapping his large arms underneath Tony’s armpits. He lifted and Tony, in a delirium, began screaming coldly, head thrashing back and eyes rolling into the back of his head. Words peeled from the genius’s lips as his hoarse voice echoed through the explosion-induced cavern.

“Please, no. Please…” He began to cry in mantra. After a few meters of Steve limping and dragging the man towards the only stable wall in the immediate area, Tony went slack into unconsciousness.

Steve settled Tony down, peeling off his red, white, and blue top, balling it up, and placing it underneath the critically wounded man’s head. His fingers began to move through the air over the broken arm as he thought of what to do.

The arm looked like It had three breaks in it, two along the forearm and one right beneath his bicep. There were two gashes that bone protruded from and Steve was immediately concerned for infection. The infection would only become worse if the pieces of bone were left where they were: they would have to be reset.

“Tony, I am going to have to set your arm… god… I am so sorry.” Steve prayed for Tony to remain unconscious as he began his work. No such luck.

As soon as he grabbed Tony’s wrist, below which was the first break, Tony’s eyes clenched shut and large tears began pouring out of them. Tony moaned from behind closed lips, sheen thick along his brow. His eyes opened slowly and looked straight into Steve’s.

“Do…it.” There was fear staring back at Steve, but also trust. Warmth. Love. “Do… it… quickly.”

Steve moved one of his hands and brushed along the genius’s forehead, trying to comfort him. “I will… hold as still as you can for me, alright?” Steve spoke softly, and, as if on instinct, leaned down and pressed his pink lips to Tony’s temple. The mechanic’s eyes widened, softened, and he then nodded stiffly and turned his head away from the waiting injury, clenching his eyes shut and biting his lower lip in anticipation for what was to come.

Steve couldn’t remember the last time his hands shook so badly, but he knew it was some time ago. Captain America rarely got rattled… but Steve Rogers did. And the fact that he was about to hurt this man, broke his heart into more pieces than the shattered bone underneath his gentle fingers.

Steve wrapped his fingers firmly and pulled. Tony’s lip bled as his teeth dove into every nerve of the soft tissue.

____

Tony’s whole body was shaking uncontrollably. This was half due to the adrenaline that flowed through his body and half due to the dropping temperature in the bunker. Steve estimated that is was below 30 Fahrenheit and was only to get colder as night arrived. He gently lifted the mechanic’s head and pulled his shirt from its makeshift pillow form, billowing it out to cover Tony’s legs and torso.

Steve shivered from the cold, but knew that he had survived worse, so decided to toughen up. Tony needed the warmth more than he did. He could barely feel his skin as this point. It wasn’t tingling like it normally did in the harsh cold; his nerves were beyond the numbness.

He leaned his head into his hands and massaged his temples slowly, a dull ache settling in behind his eyes. He was sitting on a crumbled piece of concrete right next to Tony. The genius was crying in his sleep, pain written on his features.

Steve had pulled from his belt pouch a sewing kit. Something he kept on his body at all times since Natasha had told him the wonders that a little thread and a needle could accomplish in escape, espionage, you name it. He had gingerly sewed up Tony’s arm after the man had cried himself into mental oblivion.  Now he rested fitfully, still sweating as a fever took hold of his body.

Steve didn’t know when rescue was on the way. When or _if_ rescue was coming, he supposed. He didn’t know if any of his fellow Avengers had been captured or caught in the blast, or exactly how far the blast had reached. Worry filled his every feature. Worry for Tony. Worry for his comrades. Worry for himself came last.

He reached out a cold hand and slipped his fingers through Tony’s non-broken ones, squeezing tightly for comfort. He could feel every crease between the pads of Tony’s palm and could feel the heat radiating from the mechanic’s body. He moved down from his squat on the rock and slid his body around Tony’s, hoping to cool him with his cold form and hoping to warm himself from Tony’s febrile one.

At least that is what he told himself. He had dreamed of this moment. Not the whole injury part or the little hope of rescue before he froze to death part… but holding Tony. Being able to breathe him in. Despite the grime and sweat and the whole damn shitty situation, Tony smelled like sandalwood and vanilla. His sweaty curls brushed against Steve’s nose and he smiled softly, burying his nose into the dark strands in welcome.

Steve wrapped his arms gently around the mechanic, avoiding the spots of broken skin lining Tony’s torso. Steve allowed himself to pretend for a moment that they were back at the tower. Lying in Tony’s double king-sized bed. Laughing. Smiling. Tony’s smile could light up a whole room, Steve thought. And when it did, Steve would nuzzle his lips into the crook of Tony’s neck, softly lining it with kisses, licks, and nibbles as the man moaned beneath him…

This had been his dream, his desire. And up until this point he never thought he would live through it. Now he just prayed that they made it through enough that he could tell Tony. Tell Tony about _his_ feelings and about how he wanted Tony too. About how they were a team, colleagues, but that they could make it work. Steve knew he loved him that much… if they made it through this, they could make it through anything.

_____

The mechanic continued coughing, until he was woken up by the fit that wracked his body. Tony tried to sit up but cried out when his arm drug from its stationary spot on the ground. His arm burned like someone had lit it on fire and his chest felt as if he had been sprayed with shotgun pellets.  

Tony didn’t cry often, but he felt like crying now. Howling even, as pain pounded every fiber of his body. Finally, he managed to sit fully, trying to get his eyes to open, even though they felt glued shut. The agonizing pain in his arm came to fruition as blood rushed from his upper body to the appendage, lighting the nerves even further on fire.

“Tony…”

Alarmed, Tony shot around to face the person speaking to him; sweat flung off the tendrils of hair that hung from his forehead. He raised his good fist defensively, before noting that the other person was only Steve. And that Steve was…. Spooning him?

“What are you doing?” Tony, shocked, scooted to the side so that the super soldiers skin wasn’t touching him. It was then that he noticed Steve’s topless form, covered in goosepimples and nipples a deep purplish-blue. The genius blinked, quickly determining that, despite the fever that was apparently raging through him, it was well below freezing in the bunker. The water that dripped from the broken pipes above was frozen and the rocks glistened from the humidity that now dusted them with frost.

“It-it’s-ve-very-c-c-cold.” Steve’s teeth chattered, and he removed his hands from laying limply at Tony’s sides to wrap around his chest awkwardly.

“Put your shirt on, “Tony flung the blue article off of him and onto Steve’s lap, “that will help… nngh.” Tony fell to his side, supporting himself on his good arm. He looked down and noticed several bloody spots dotting his torso.

_Not good…_

“Better take care of yourself Cap…I might not be making it out of this one.” With that Tony coughed and blood spattered the stone beneath him. “…. Correction…” he gurgled, “I am probably not making it out of this one.”

He laid back, head hitting Steve’s bicep roughly. His eyes closed, and, for a moment, he let himself ignore the repeated nagging telling him to not touch Steve. That Steve didn’t want him.

_If I am going to die… who’s to say I can’t at least feel one piece of the beefcake that has a hold of my heart?_

Tony smiled, partly due to the happy thought and partly due to his febrile state.

Steve unwrapped his arms from himself and instead wrapped them round Tony, careful to avoid the wounds and his arm.

“Let’s use my shirt to cover both of us…you need it more than I do. This sweat is going to put you straight into hypothermia. C’mere.” He pulled Tony’s form in close to him and pulled the large garment over their chests.

It could’ve been Tony’s delirium, but he could’ve sworn that he fit perfectly in Steve’s large, warm arms. Steve’s skin pressed against Tony’s bare hand. It was smooth. Cold now, but normally warm. He could feel the supersoldier’s warm breath hit the back of his neck and he shivered. Steve chuckled a little.

“Tony… if we don’t make it out of here…”

_If I died now… I would die the happiest man alive._

“I- I love you too…”


	4. Artwork

  



	5. Chapter 5

They needed to get out of here. Steve was sure that oxygen was at least flowing into the space, but without rescue and with only the gauntlet’s dim lighting, they could be trapped in here indefinitely. This was all not to mention the ever-present threat of the rock finally collapsing on top of them from weak support structure.

Tony laid in Steve’s arms, breathing fitfully. They had grasped hands after Steve’s declaration. No words.

The light from the gauntlet was flickering, power supply almost drained.

Steve needed to get them out of here.

He slowly pulled his hand from where it attached to Tony’s, a frozen layer of sweat between the appendages causing his hand to stick. He pulled firmly and with a snap, they separated.

He pushed Tony slowly off of him, struggling to move himself because he was so cold. The man beneath him whimpered at the movement and loss of warmth. Tony was pale and underneath him were circlets of blood staining the ground. Steve pulled his shirt back on carefully.

_I have got to get us out of here…_

Steve, frozen and uncomfortable, limped over to where he suspected the door used to be. That tunnel was long; there would be no way to get through all the rock if the whole thing had collapsed. But, rather than go through the ceiling and further risking collapse of thousands of pounds of concrete on them, he decided that the main doorway was their best shot.

Steve glanced back at Tony and his face softened. He had just confessed his feelings to this man. This vulnerable, wounded man in front of him. Tony’s eyes were clenched shut and he moaned out Steve’s name. His black body suit was torn in several places, revealing soft, tanned skin and bloody gashes that lightly poured blood due to some sort of failed clotting factor or re-tearing of the skin. His black hair had lost its typical gel-induced shine and style, and was now in ringlets along his forehead, lightly dusted with debris, blood, and frost.

The supersoldier set his face, determined. He turned back to the pile of rocks blocking the doorway and began to move them one by one. Occasionally he would feel light headed, as his head gash was still bleeding, but he would persevere and continue on. His ankle burned, but he ignored it.

Steve was so enthralled into his task that he didn’t notice the small man behind him, limping towards him with a fixed, dead gaze. Tony began to lift smaller rocks with his good hand and chucked them away.

The supersoldier’s head shot around and he immediately rushed to the man’s side. “Tony, Tony Tony… stop! I can do this. You need to lay down.”

“Must…get….out.” Tony ground out, throwing another rock over his shoulder. His eyes were half lidded, and Steve could tell it pained him with every movement. His arm was bright red, swollen, and covered in a thick layer of scarlet from the three wounds that the bone had punctured.

Steve wrapped his arms around Tony, lifted, and, despite Tony’s raspy protests, drug him back to his station by the gauntlet.

“No.”

“Yes.”

“ _No._ ”

“Nngh- yes.”

“Sit down.”

Tony coughed up blood, “Can’t…. you need me.”

“I got you.”

Tony, despite the delirium and pain, smiled softly at the statement. Remembering his earlier promise to an unconscious Steve Rogers as concrete littered their surroundings.

Steve reached out gentle finger tips and brushed Tony’s hair from his head wound and eyes. Tony leaned into his touch and kissed his palm.

“You are losing a lot of blood… sit for me. _Please_.”

Tony nodded slowly and, using Steve’s shoulders, sat down on the jagged ground. He slumped against a rock for back support.

Steve sniffed in approval and shuffled back over to the rock pile, moving piece by piece with a robotic stare.

What had to be hours passed. Each time he heard a rumbling, Steve was sure the building was going to collapse on top of them, but it never did. He had removed a large portion of the rocks on his side, but still didn’t see any gaps leading to the sight of outside.

On the bright side, he was a little warmer from the activity.

The super soldier inspected his throbbing palms and found them to be bloody, slits of skin on each former callus. He turned towards Tony to commiserate and his worry spiked drastically.

Tony lay face first on the ground, broken arm twisted under him and legs splayed out unceremoniously.

“Tony!” Steve started towards him, when suddenly thunder sounded, and rocks started falling from the ceiling. _Shit!_ Steve dived, covered Tony’s body with his own, care thrown to the wind.

The concrete blocks fell all around them, covering their immediate area. Somehow, by some miracle, the stones failed to hit them. Instead they made a small enclosure, trapping both men in an even smaller area than they were in before, one where they could barely move without hitting stone slabs beside them.

Steve opened his eyes slowly and slid his body off of the man under him. He blinked the dust from his eyes.

They were fucked.

____

Days passed. On the third day, Steve could swear that he could hear someone shuffling above them and his hope for rescue increased. On the fourth, it was silent, and he found himself going crazy with anxiety that help may not be arriving. The fifth day, Steve felt nothing. He was numb, both emotionally and physically. His toes and fingers were blue, as were Tony’s.

He had wrapped the smaller man in the warmth of his arms. He would pull his chest back every now and then and the unconscious man’s head would roll back, exposing his pale skin. Tony’s breathing was shallow, barely noticeable, and Steve began to lose hope for his lover and himself.

Steve planted a kiss on Tony’s forehead and held him close, trying to increase the warmth between them.

____

“Friday…..under……right here….. Hulk….moron. MORON STOP!” A huge _kerthunk_ sounded out and he felt pebbles fall into his hair.

Steve very slowly looked above him. His movements were stiff, frozen. His hair was icy from where it had been pressed against Tony’s sweaty forehead and froze. His eyelashes had crystals on them. He could see blue. Light blue with white puffs moving along it. He could see sky.

“Tony…. Sky.” He shook his arm a little but the dark haired man’s head just lolled from side to side. “Tony. _Tony._ Tony?”

Steve didn’t feel Tony’s breath on his neck anymore and the man was freezing cold, an icy brick against Steve. He shook again but got nothing in return.

“Help…” His voice rang out.

He was vaguely aware of people shifting rocks carefully around them, trying to ensure their survival, but Steve stared at Tony continually, worry etched on his cold features. If Steve could cry, he would have. But the dehydration had gotten to him and he had no fluid left to give.

“Tony… please.”

The other Avengers smiled through the hole they had made towards Steve. Until they saw Steve’s expression and the still man within his arms. This made the group collectively move fast. Clint came down first, separating the two of them despite Steve’s objections. He pulled them apart and laid Tony down flat on his back to evaluate his condition.

“His heart is beating, but barely. No respiration.” Clint made hand signals and soon a helicraft flew down, setting down what was nearby judging from the thrumming sound of the propellers.

One by one, the Hulk took each of them in his firm hands, squeezing slightly too tightly, and set them on the ground. Medics rushed around them. Steve laid still but was close enough that he reached out to grasp Tony’s hand. It was cold. Incognizant. But the fingers squeezed back.

____

They kept the men together, otherwise Steve would start making a ruckus by kicking and screaming bloody murder. He had held onto the other man for 5 days total, caring for him, worrying about him. Now that they were out of the crumbling Hell, Steve wasn’t about to let him die.

Throughout the whole medical process, they had remained clasping hands and no one would remove one for the other. Steve was warmed up slowly and his wounds were stitched up or butterfly bandaged. Tony… was another story altogether. Steve had tried his best to set his arm, but it was set incorrectly, so they had to re-break and then re-set. Fortunately, Tony had been unconscious the whole time… nothing like it was when Steve had to fix his arm in the bunker.

The mechanic had been drugged ever since their rescue. It had been two weeks and today was the day. Today was the day Tony would wake up.

Steve sat in the chair beside his bed, his ankle wrapped in ace bandage from a stress fracture. He had little stitches left embedded in the gash on his forehead and some slight, short-term nerve damage from the cold, but for the most part was well.

Tony’s face was covered in butterfly bandages, stitches, and bruises. His arm was in a bright red and gold (Rhodey’s idea) cast, and the bruising around his throat was a dull chartreuse. The blankets were pulled up to his chin; Steve didn’t want him to be cold ever again and thus had the doctors keep him bundled up.

The hospital room window was frosted over as a snow storm brewed outside, white dust collecting on the window pane and glass shaking with the force of the wind outside.

Natasha stood on the other side of the bed, looking back and forth between the two men. Her red hair was pulled back on one side in a pretty clip and she wore a shimmery red cocktail dress. She patted Tony’s good hand and leaned over to kiss him on the forehead. She turned her attention to Steve.

“He should wake up soon. The drugs have been mostly out of his system for a few hours now…just light sedatives for a few weeks to keep him compliant…. Which is saying something considering he is Tony Stark.” She smiled lopsidedly and looked deeper into Steve’s face after a beat.

“What happened down there? You seem different and… well… your bond with him is particularly changed.” She glanced at their clasped hands.

Steve coughed, “I’ll tell you another time Nat… for now, can I spend some time just the two of us?”

She got the hint and winked. “Sure thing… I can leave the lovebirds alone.”

Steve rolled his eyes and smiled, “Thanks, Nat.”

With that, the Black Widow left them alone in the room.

Steve’s gaze followed her out and then resettled on Tony’s facial features. Startlingly, one eye popped open, followed by the other.

“Oh good, she’s gone.”

“You’re awake!”

“Your observation skills are pristine.” Tony looked down and witnessed the hand holding. Initially he was confused, but slowly rapped his fingers tighter around Steve’s palm, comfortable. “So… you don’t just like me when it is a life or death situation?”

“I don’t like you…” Tony’s face fell and he began to withdraw his hand, “…I love you.”

The genius slowly smiled, albeit a little arrogantly. “I _knew_ it! What about the team and professionalism and all that jazz?”

“They’ll live.”

“Different attitude than a few weeks ago. I like it.”

“I knew you would, Tony.”

“Hey, say, can we never do that whole bit in a collapsed bunker again? That wasn’t fun. The whole bone setting thing and freezing to death thing is a bit hazy for me, but I don’t think it was too fun either…” Steve stood up, leaned over the stammering man, and slowly pressed his lips to Tony’s.

Tony felt the electricity flow between them as they explored each other’s taste for the first time. Their tongues intertwined, deepening the kiss. Steve’s tongue drew squiggles along Tony’s bottom lip and the genius felt a shiver run along his spine.

Steve pulled away, leaving Tony with his eyes closed and speechless.

“Merry Christmas, Tony.”

“Merry Christmas, Cap.”


End file.
